Dr. Hank Emerson looked on in mixed horror and astonishment as the large mechs continued their assault on Metropolis. Police and ARGUS agents were being forced backwards despite their best efforts. Hank was the Director of Engineering at Chase Incorporated and one of the foremost minds on the planet when it came to technology. ARGUS had called him in when the incident started over a half hour ago. So far he had been unable to shut the mechs down. The only thing he had left to try was an electromagnetic pulse, however, that would shut all technology in the area off. If these machines were somehow immune he would be taking out all forms of communication for the emergency responders on the scene. The ARGUS agent in charge wasn't yet willing to risk the EMP. Hank had all ready heard that the ARGUS super powered support would be two hours out at best. No word from SHIELD or Vanguard as far as he knew. Someone needed to help these people.

"Someone get the Fantastic Five on the line! We need assistance, now!" The lead agent yelled at several of his subordinates as the mechs continued to wreak havoc. No demands had been made. No contact at all had been established with the enemy. They seemed solely intent on wanton destruction, "The FF aren't in Metropolis, sir! Someone said they are off planet....or in another dimension. Something like that," came the response from another man.

Their leader looked around gravely and frowned, "Where the hell is Superman when you need him!"

There was a loud explosion and the crowd, along with the mechs, turned to investigate. One of the metallic giants was sparking violently, smoke flowing from his chest and back. Something was poking out of the torso area of the machine. It slowly tipped and hit the ground, allowing another explosion to rip it apart. A long, golden rod stood straight up in the air. The lead agent stepped forward, "Is that a spear?"

The group watched a male and female walk closer. The pair were both wearing Atlantean scale armor. Hank smiled. Superman and the Fantastic Five were both MIA but someone else had arrived to provide back up, "No, Agent. That's not a spear. It's a trident."

The bystanders looked on with renewed hope as Prince Victor of Atlantis tore through another of the mechs with his bare hands. He made his way to the first fallen enemy and pulled his weapon free. He spun around and leveled the trident at another mech, releasing a massive blast of lightning-like energy. The concussive force of the attack tossed the enemy backwards while simultaneously ripping it apart. Without missing a step he released the blast and turned while bringing the weapon up, slicing another mechanical solider cleanly in half. Hank was amazed at the gracefulness and sheer power this man commanded. It was not just Prince Victor that was impressive, however. His bride to be, Lorna, was swift and merciless. The enemies didn't stand any better a chance against her.

Everyone watched as the Atlantean woman ripped a fire hydrant from the ground and threw it with such force that it went straight through one of the mechs. She then whirled about and brought her hands up, her eyes turning a distinct pearl color. The water coming from the hole in the ground where the hydrant had been twisted into the air taking on the shape of a massive serpent. The hard water creation swept down and destroyed several more of the mechanized units before dissipating. Lorna then used her gifts to form two large blades from the liquid and charged the remainder of the enemies. Between the pair the mechs lasted only a few minutes before being completely destroyed. The crowd went wild, "Aquaman! Aquaman! Aquaman!"

Victor had yet to truly embrace that name. His father, Namor the Second, had spoken highly of Orin, the original Aquaman. Victor had known him by reputation only. The mantle of Aquaman was an honor. One that he wasn't sure he deserved. Hank approached the Atlanteans, the agent in charge behind him, "Prince Victor! Thank you for your help!"

The man turned around and looked at Dr. Emerson, "The only thanks I require is for you foolish surface dwellers to stop creating weapons of destruction that my people have to continuously clean up. You are lucky we were near by. The next time there may be a very different outcome."

With that the Atlanteans walked away from the crowd, speaking to no one else. Hank watched them go, not believing the lack of tact the Prince had just shown him, "What an ass."

The agent in charge just nodded, "Yup. That's why I asked for Superman."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Namor the Third walked around the chamber, his arms crossed over his chest. The problem before him was one that had plagued him for some time now. His councilmembers had asked for action on the matter of the pollution problems around the world that were heavily damaging the ecosystem that the Atlanteans called home. The surface dwellers, in their infinite wisdom often failed to understand that the majority of the planet’s actual surface area was in fact water. They damaged and destroyed carelessly. Their actions had affected the Atlanteans for years, and he had tried to do something about it.

Stopped however, by the presence of the Avengers. His course of action may have been the violent choice, but the fact remained that something needed to be done and the surface dwellers only listened to violence. The man with the slightly pointed ears had heard the words of the man called Captain America. He seemed like someone who could be trusted, someone who would make good on their word to help Atlantis.

But that did not mean that it was the truth, however. For all Namor knew, there was backstabbing that was going to happen. Already, he had to deal with members of the council who felt that his actions had not been stringent enough, that he needed to return to the surface and finish what had begun. A part of Namor wanted to give in to their shield bashing and sword waving. Their entreaties did not fall on entirely deaf ears. At the same time, Namor knew that as the King of Atlantis his actions had to be for the benefit of all.

Yes, his forces could crush the surface dwellers’ navies of submarines and destroyers with little harm to themselves. If there was one thing that the Atlanteans definitively excelled at, it was underwater warfare. However, if there was one thing that the surface dwellers definitively excelled at, it was creating weapons of mass destruction with casual regard for the fall out. That was not something that he could risk as the King of Atlantis.

Which brought him to his other option. He could work with Captain America and work with the Avengers to see what could be done to fix the current problems and safeguard the future of the waters. That would require diplomacy and tact and it was not something that Namor was looking forward to. At the same time, however, it had a brighter promise for the future than open war did.

The doors to the chamber opened, interrupting his thoughts. Namor turned and saw a man walk in to the room.

“Brother.” Victor said, carrying the Trident of Neptune. “I apologize for my lateness. There was a situation on the surface world, the city called Metropolis.” He said. “Lorna and I were passing through and intervened before damage could be wrought upon the city.”

Namor waved his hand. “It’s fine. This meeting isn’t that important. More of the same. Council members demanding that we create a sustained campaign against the surface dwellers.” He said. “The crown can be so tiring sometimes.”

Victor had long been against a war with the surface world. Unlike the majority of his fellow Atlanteans he was actually born in a human hospital to a human mother. He lived in a small coastal town in Oregon called Port Orford until he was fifteen years old with his mom. He wasn't told of his heritage until he was thirteen. That was also the first time he met his father. When his mother was diagnosed with cancer and died six months later Namor the Second returned for his son and brought him back to Atlantis. That was the first time he had met his older brother and younger sister. He and his sister had taken to each other quickly. She had been his unofficial ambassador to Atlantean life. They had been close ever since. He and his brother on the other hand recognized each other as family but they were certainly not close.

Most likely this was impart due to the fact that Victor had been born out of wedlock; the product of an affair. Their father had cheated on Namor's mother with Victor's. To top it off Victor had been welcomed into the royal family with open arms, even receiving the the Trident of Neptune upon his father's death; an item traditionally given from the King to his heir. Namor had received the crown and Victor the trident. Though Namor had acted respectfully it still must have irritated him to be denied the traditional weapon of the past kings. The brothers were civil to one another and both knew they could trust the other with their lives, but their conversations were generally very business-like. The Prince stared at his older brother, "You know where I stand on the matter, Namor. A war with the surface would be devastating to all of us. There would be no winners."

Victor walked around the chamber, casually looking out the window at the ocean around them. He had come to truly love the sea. It was unlike any other place on earth. However, he also loved the land. He enjoyed the small town feel of his birth place. The little street fairs and families barbecuing on the weekends held an appeal that the elegance of Atlantis could never capture. Victor would always be opposed to a war for he a was a man born of two worlds, "You are the King, brother. The council be damned. Your word is law and you need not answer to men craving blood and conquest."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

“A wise king listens when counseled. Our father taught us that.” Namor said, contemplating his younger brother’s words. “I need to strike a balance between the two sides.” He added, before starting forward. “Come, let us speak with them.”

The doors opened as the King of Atlantis, and the Crown Prince of Atlantis walked through them. Though he knew that Victor’s words were not meant with ill intent or to slight, there was some truth to them. The majority of the council was all older men, not younger ones. That was something that he had noticed about this group that he had fought in Washington D.C. The majority of the team seemed young, decidedly so. They were all children of the Chrell so to speak. However the men in front of Namor were much older, even for Atlanteans.

These were men who hadn’t fought in the Chrell Invasion, men who had risen to their position by taking the spots of those who had been slain. Indeed, when his father had been King, Namor the Second’s Council had been filled with veterans of the Invasion. They had understood true war. But just as his father had passed, so too had many of them. There was only a scarce few that had served under his father. So when Victor said that they were men who craved blood and conquest, he had a decided point.

The men in front of him had missed their chance, either through fate or cowardice. They seeked war to give themselves one last shot at glory, even vicariously, not to truly better the people of Atlantis.

I was a fool to listen to them once.

“Namor, we have grievances.” One member of the Council said. “You allowed our forces to be routed by the land dwellers. Your father would never have done that.”

“My father fought the Chrell.” Namor said. “He taught me how to fight an open and total war. A war for survival. Not a war against men who possess powers rivaling our own.”

“That does not take away from the fact that you lost.” Another council member said. “Our weapon, our solution to the land dwellers was destroyed, its power source stolen from us. Yet you want us to trust this…this Captain America’s words that the land dwellers can change.”

There was a laugh that went around a few of them.

“Since they learned how to put cloth atop wood and harness the wind for propulsion, the land dwellers have been poisoning our waters. This is decades, Namor. This is centuries.” The council member said, continuing. “What makes you so sure that they have changed?”

“Nothing.” Victor said, stepping forward. “Nothing should indicate that they have changed. But everyone has the ability to change. What morals would we have, if we do not afford them the chance to prove themselves?” He asked.

Silence went around the room, until one council member was heard whispering. “Shall we listen to this half-breed?”

The silence was deafening. The words that had come from Ariak, one of the council members, had been heard by all in the chamber. Whether he had intended for that to happen was not important. What was important is he had just insulted Victor. The prince stood still for a what seemed to be an eternity before slowly turning to stare down his new opponent. With lightning reflexes that not even Namor could have stopped he ripped the man from his seat and pinned him against the wall; holding him around the throat and lifting him from the floor with one hand. The other council members seemed distraught but when it was apparent that the King himself would make no move to stop what was happening the others followed suit.

Ariak's face showed a level of terror that he certainly wasn't accustomed to. Victor's gaze seemed to burn through him, "I am the brother of the king! YOUR king! I have stood against the enemies of Atlantis and led our armies to victory time and again. I wield the Trident of Neptune and command the might of the oceans."

Victor brought his face in close to Ariak's, "I am the Crown Prince of Atlantis and heir to the throne! And if I cannot earn your respect, coward, then I will be more than happy to squeeze every ounce of fear out of your decrepit, old body!"

"Victor...," Namor's voice was the only thing to be heard over Ariak's frantic breathing. The councilman breathed a sigh of relief as Victor released him, "I.....I apologize, my Prince. Please forgive my trespasses." The man bowed his head and returned to his seat, tail very clearly between his legs.

The prince returned to the topic at hand, "Let me be clear.....I am NOT condoning the destructive actions of my surface dwelling brethren," His gaze passed over Ariak in order to make a point, "but war would prove to be even more destructive to all involved. If my brother believes we can trust Captain America and avoid hostilities then that is what we will do."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

There were murmurs going around the room, but Victor silenced them, lifting the Trident and bringing it down upon the ground, the sound reverberating throughout the room. Victor looked over at his half brother, who was seated and looking out of a window, as if his mind was on something else.

“Ariak, your words only demonstrate why you should not be on this council.” Namor said, still looking out of the window. “However, I do not have the ability to remove you, as the positions are for life. That being said, I can let my brother here publically beat you and shame you for the remainder of that life.” He said, and finally tore his eyes away from the window, staring directly into Ariak’s face. “Should you ever insult the House of Namor again, that is precisely what will happen.”

“I…I understand, my King.” Ariak said, looking down at the ground.

“Now, to the matter at hand. Yes, the land-dwellers defeated us, but they revealed a very important weakness.” Namor said. “Their heroes wish to be diplomatic and negotiate. That can be exploited if need be. Not all will have that mentality, but many will. Land dwellers were successful in taking the power source of the SM-1 Submarine.” He said. “That does not mean that the vessel can not be rebuilt, and a new power source found.”

“We have received reports of strange readings coming from Antartica.” One of the council members said. “The University of Atlantis has asked to send researchers along with a military expedition to see what can be uncovered.” He said.

Namor nodded. “This is a viable option. Understand, Council members, that I am not abandoning the idea of war with the surface dwellers.” He said, missing the change of the look on Victor’s face. “I am merely saying that we give them their chance. Should they fail, should they break faith, then we know our cause is just. Meanwhile, we will rebuild our weapon, and prepare for what some of you consider an inevitability, but what my brother hopes is a fantasy.” He said and rose, walking out of the chambers with Vincent.

When they were a bit aways from the chamber, Namor turned to Victor. “I want you to go on this expedition to the Antartic.” He said.

“You don’t think this has anything to do with Namora, does it?” Victor asked. “She is one of the student researchers at the University.”

Their sister was a student t the University, and Namor was fiercely protective of her. She was very adventurous and if there was some kind of expedition, there was no question that she would want to be on it.

“She hasn’t said anything to us about these findings, which make it all the more suspicious. This is the first I’ve heard of it.” Namor said, looking in the direction that they had come. “The council is beginning to be more and more untrustworthy. If she is on the expedition, keep an eye on her. I fear someone is plotting something, but I know not what.”

The water was frigid in these parts. It had been some time since Victor had visited this region of the world and had almost forgotten the chill. His body, however, was adapted to the temperature extremes of the sea. It had been three days since the military convoy had departed the capital of Atlantis and headed toward the rendezvous point with the researchers. They were under the command of the Prince, who was a decorated and skilled military leader the likes of which Atlantis had seldom seen. The scientists and their students all stood in respect as the soldiers and their commander entered the temporary base. The group came to a halt as an attractive young woman swam up, "Victor! I've been waiting for you."

The woman embraced the prince and he returned the gesture with a wide smile, "Hello, little sister. I have missed you greatly." She grinned and intertwined her arm with his and began leading him to the commissary, "Let's grab a snack and you can tell me all of the things our big brother is brooding over now."

OOC: Sorry so short, Ninzi. At least you can move the story ahead a bit.

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

“He definitely is brooding.” Victor said, with a chuckle. "Not that he doesn't have reasons to." He added. "Heavy is the head, as they say."

“Is it because he lost that attack on Washington D.C.?” Namora asked, her blond hair a stark difference than most of the Atlanteans in the room of the commissary. “I watched some of the footage from the surface dwellers’ news systems. That Captain America guy is rather attractive.” She said.

“Please don’t let Namor hear that. He’ll fight the Captain again, just on principle.” Victor said, and she laughed. Victor eased up a bit, despite being in a quasi-military setting. This was his sister after all. “What can you tell me about the research program?” He asked.

“It’s going well, but we don’t have any record of what this energy source is.” She said, eating some of her food. “I’m one of the junior researchers, so I don’t have access to all of the data. Dr. Cassus is the lead, he’s the one you really want to talk to.”

Victor frowned. “What’s really going on?” He asked.

Namora looked around the room. “The truth?” She asked, and he nodded. “Not here, I can’t talk fully here.” She said and that told Victor everything he needed to know. If the sister of the King of Atlantis could not hold a frank conversation with one of her brothers, the Crown Prince of Atlantis, in an Atlantean military base and research station, then something was wrong. She rose and indicated that he should follow.

Stepping into one of the observation decks, a few minutes later, she turned to Victor. “We have no idea what the readings mean. We really don’t have information on what’s going on, because we lost a lot of our history and knowledge because of the Chrell, at least hard copies of data. But what I can tell you has nothing to do with the research.” She said and continued when Victor gave her a prodding look. “Some of the soldiers here are loyal to Namor in name only. They really swear allegiance to members of his council. Victor, I’m just a research student, I don’t know what’s going on. What happened back home?” She asked, her blue eyes questioning.

The image of his brother appeared in form of swirling water. The communication device was ancient Atlantean technology that worked so well that few improvements had been made to it over the years. The King looked at the Crown Prince with concern, "Why are we speaking in private, Victor? What have you discovered?"

The Prince stared at his brother. Namor was looking more and more worn down, "Because we have enemies. I cannot identify them with any degree of certainty but I know at least a few of them reside in the council. Something is being planned, brother. Many of the military commanders are barely loyal to the crown at all."

Victor was silent for a moment, allowing Namor to absorb his words, "A war is coming, my king. We need to discover the identity of our adversary before they strike."

His brother stared at Aquaman, his eyes narrowing, "You have more to say, Victor. I can see it on your face. Out with it."

"You won't like what I have to say, Namor," The Prince exclaimed.

The King let a brief smile cross his face, "Brother, do I ever like what you have to say?"

Victor nodded. He was not amused. Not because the joke wasn't funny, but because he knew how his brother would react to what he had to say next, "We should reach out to Xebel. They may be willing to align themselves with the throne."

Namor's face reddened in anger. This was the reaction Victor had been expecting, "We will not ally ourselves with those we have defeated! They are beneath us, Victor! Only a half breed would even consider such a moronic tactic!"

Victor felt his own anger begin to flare. He and his brother had not always gotten along.....for many reasons. Namor's temper and lack of tact was often chief among them, "Namor, as my King I honor and support you. But as my brother I tell you this, speak to me in that manner again and words will not be the only thing we exchange."

The Atlantean King knew he was in the wrong but his pride would never allow him to admit it, "Be careful, Victor. Father is no longer here to protect you." With that the image of Namor dissipated. The Prince shook his head in dismay. His brother's pride would cost him everything someday. His unwillingness to speak with the nation of Xebel was idiotic. Unlike the surface world there were only two major nations below the seas; Atlantis and Xebel. The latter had once been the ruling kingdom of a separate dimension. Before that it had been a penal colony of Atlantis, very similar to Australia's origin. The former Queen of Xebel, Mera, had ushered in peace with Atlantis after she married Orin, the original Aquaman. Upon her death the two nations grew apart once more until war was inevitable. Atlantis had barely won and Dimension Aqua had been destroyed in the conflict. Refugees flooded into this dimension and reestablished the kingdom of Xebel. Now the oceans of the world were split with Atlantis having control of the Atlantic and surrounding area and Xebel holding claim to the Pacific.

Hostilities had ceased and an uneasy peace had followed. Aquaman was well aware that Atlantis was heading for Civil War and the forces of Xebel could prove instrumental in ensuring the crown remained with Namor. Perhaps Victor would have to seek an audience with Xebel himself....after he figured out what was happening here and he ensured that Namora was safe.

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Namor walked through the halls of the palace, his mind unease. More and more it seemed as though that was always his state of mind. His halls reeked of disloyalty, and now that he knew of it, it irked him. His brother’s abhorrent suggestion, that they turn to the Kingdom of Xebel was tantamount to blasphemy in Namor’s eyes. That kingdom of traitors did control parts of the Pacific, but the entirety of the oceans belonged to Namor, no matter what those fools told themselves. Before he had received word of the Avengers’ actions at the Cape Verde islands off the coast of Africa, he had been in the area surrounding what the land dwellers called New Zealand. There he had been administering justice to two cities that had had a dispute.

Supposedly within the realm of Xebel, they had instead opined for his justice and his wisdom. That was enough to tell Namor who was truly in control of the watery depths. Atlantis, not some fool pretenders to the throne. But before he could consider Victor’s absurd suggestion, he had far more pressing matters to concern himself with.

Dissension in his ranks.

If what Victor was telling him was true, and he had no reason to doubt his half-brother, then many of commanders in the military had lost their allegiance to him. They were giving it to various members of the royal council. There was a problem with that. He didn’t know which members of the council plotted against him, and he didn’t know for sure the numbers that they had. A coup was being planned all around him, and Namor knew not from what direction his enemies would come.

“What seems to be the manner, Namor?”

He turned at the familiar voice. “The troubles of a king are not those that I would burden you with.” He said to the old man.

“Nonsense. It’s precisely what I’m here for.” The man said, with a small smile. “It’s what your father trusted me for.” He added, as he walked forward. “What are your troubles, boy, out with it.” He said.

Namor shook his head. Callan was an old trusted friend of his father’s and of the crown. Truth be told, he had helped raise Namor when he had been but a whelp. One of the benefits of that, for Callan, was that he was one of the few people who could talk to Namor in such a manner and not face the wrath of the king.

“The reports of these mysterious readings in the waters of Antartica trouble me. I know not what they bode for the future.” He said. “The crown has enemies, Callan, and there are those that would plot against me and mine.”

“What have I always taught you?” Callan asked, with a short shake of his head. “You start with the beginning of the problem and work your way to the solution one step at a time. It is not my fault that you are more bullheaded than the shark. You have a problem with your military, that’s what you don’t want to say. Your solution is simple. Ensure that there is someone in charge of the military that you trust. Give that person the mandate to root out the traitors and you will have accomplished your first task. Your other problem is your council. That is far trickier. You need someone who can oversee them, be in multiple places at once.”

Callan had cut to the core of the problem, and Namor hadn’t even spoken to him about the truth of the matter. There was a reason why his father had gone to the man for counsel. Namor had been a fool not to do so sooner. The man had never steered him wrong in the past. “What then is your suggestion on that front?”

“I can’t solve all your problems, Namor, otherwise I would be the King and you could swim with minnows the way you carry on.” Callan said. “Find someone who you can trust and someone who can lead the army properly.” He said. “Most importantly, it can’t be Victor.”

Namor’s brow furrowed, as his half-brother would have most assuredly been his first candidate. “Why not?”

“Because it’s a decision your enemies will expect.” Callan said and turned to walk away. “Ultimately, it is your decision.”

“I didn’t promise you a five star resort, so I don’t know what your issue is.” Jamie Collinsworth said, causing his daughter, Nadia, to shake her head. “I told you we had a chance to make a lot of money, and asked if you were okay with coming with.”

The black haired woman shook her head. This was not how she had anticipated spending her summer vacation. She’d anticipated spending it by water, by ocean water even, but not when the temperatures were as damned cold as they were. Nadia had been thinking more along the lines of the Florida Keys. After all, that was where she was from, and she was home from college right now, so shouldn’t it be comfortable? But her father had said that he was going on this long trip for work, and she had opted to go with him.

After all, she didn’t get a chance to see her dad that often now that she was in school. Nadia was a film major in Los Angeles, and her father owned and operated a charter service based out of the Florida Keys. He had gotten this offer to take a few marine scientists out to Antartica and take them around a bit. Back in the day, her father had worked on a number of fishing companies around the world, and his level of experience as a sailor was pretty well known throughout the business.

Nadia reached out and caught a falling snowflake. Of course it was snowing. It was always snowing here. They were almost to their destination, a marine research station that was operated by a number of different countries, but was primarily funded by the United States. The research scientists were from different universities around the country and they were working on a few projects. Some were marine scientists, but they had physicists and chemists as well, not mention a bunch of engineers. She’d picked up a little conversation with some of the scientists and she had learned that they had detected some weird energy signatures coming from parts of the deep ice, and that’s what they were here for.

All she knew was that she was hoping to get back to the Keys sooner than later.

---

“Victor, we have a problem.” Namora said, running into the room where one of the soldiers had told her that she could find her half-brother. There were other soldiers there and though she knew of the problems that were hidden beneath the waves when it came to Atlantis, she could not afford for any of that to stop her from telling her half-brother the news.

There were lives at stake, and possibly more than just the lives that were around the area. She didn’t know what the outcome could be, she knew that it was serious though.

“What is it?” He asked, a look of concern on his face.

“We found one of the sources of the energy readings. It’s the largest source that we’ve found just yet, and it seems to be where all of the others are coming from. When we get close to it, it emanates some kind of wave that knocks our equipment back.” She said.

“Then what’s the problem?” He asked.

“The problem isn’t us.” Namora said. “There are surface dwellers who have been digging towards it from above, and sending submersibles to inspect it as well. They’re getting close and the readings are starting to spike. They’ve jumped up by over fifty six percent in the past two hours. We wanted to place monitors and study it slowly, but it seems like the surface dwellers are trying to get whatever this is above ground.”

“What happens if they do?” Victor asked.

“Dr. Cassus doesn’t know.” She said, shaking her head. The look on her face was one of abject worry and concern. “We don’t know what this thing is, so we can’t even begin to project what would happen. Most of us here are marine researchers, not physicists.” She said. “We have to do something to get the surface dwellers’ attention.”

Victor had a commanding presence. It didn't matter if he was on land or in the royal halls of Atlantis. People stopped what they were doing when he entered the room. Of course, he seemed even more impressive to the surface dwellers who were not accustomed to seeing a super powered monarch. He was counting on that. Namora said they needed a distraction. Something to get the surface dwellers' attention. There was none better than Victor; the Aquaman himself.

He rose from the oceans to the banks of the glaciers. Accompanying him was Dr. Cassus and a few other scientists. He made sure to leave the soldiers below the waves. He was not interested in starting a conflict. The others came to ground behind him and proceeded to follow their prince as he approached the base. The human scientists couldn't believe what they were seeing. A man wearing Atlantean scale male was approaching their encampment. Strapped to his back was a massive trident. Even crazier was he only wore half a chestpiece in the subzero temperatures. The prince approached the first man in his path, "I am Victor of Atlantis. You may know me better as Aquaman. I'm here to speak with whomever is in charge."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

The man looked up from the equipment that he had been working on, a sensor that had needed to be repaired. To say that he was a bit shocked by what he was looking at was an understatement. He wasn’t even a real marine researcher, he was just one of the technicians that worked to keep all the equipment up and running. “Uh, right. Yeah.” He said. “Aqua guy.” He said, and reached down for his radio. “Hey, I got some Aqua guy here says he needs to talk to someone? He says he’s a Prince of Atlantis or something. No, it’s not Joe, he hasn’t been drinking in a few days. Seriously, get one of the bosses up here.” He said.

“It’s Aquaman.” Victor replied.

“Yeah, got it.” The guy said with a head nod.

He turned and looked over his shoulder as one of the research scientists came out, throwing his arms through the sleeves of a heavy jacket to keep him warm in the cold temperatures. “Victor Ford?” The man asked. “I’m one of the chief researchers. What can we do for you, sir?” He asked.

“Turn off your machines.” Victor replied. “There are forces at work beyond what you know.” He added. “You must heed my words, for now.”

“It takes us a few minutes to turn everything off.” The scientist said, looking towards the technician and giving the go ahead to relay the order to turn the machines off. “What’s wrong?” He asked.

“We are investigating the same anomaly.” Victor said. “It would appear that while we are being careful and only placing monitors, your efforts are geared towards bringing whatever is causing the anomaly above ground. This is destabilizing the entire area.”

“Respectfully, it’s a little harder for us to study something in an area where we can’t breathe.” The scientist replied.

Victor nodded. The man had a point. “Be that as it may, you need to parse your efforts until the levels start to subside.” He said.

In the distance, an explosion became visible, and they felt the shockwave.

Victor’s eyes narrowed. That explosion was over open water. It had to have something to do with the anomaly. Even if it was just an accident, he had to check it out. Turning back, he looked at the scientist. “Make sure the machines are turned off.” He said. “Or I will turn them off myself.”

---

Five minutes Prior

“Dad, the water is turning a weird color.” Nadia said, and she pointed over the side of the boat. Her dad came over and took a look.

“Now that is strange.” He said.

Suddenly there was a glare from the color, as it flashed bright, and the boat shook. Father and daughter looked at each other, their eyes widening. Something was wrong, something was very wrong. Seemingly from the depths of the ocean, there appeared to be a vibrant green shaft of light or energy that was barreling straight for them. Jamie Collinsworth turned and started running towards the pilot’s area, but as he did, there was another shake, this time far more violent than the one prior.

He was thrown a bit, and hit his head on the side of a railing, knocking him out cold.

Nadia was able to see him. She reached for him, even though he was far away, and that was when she realized that he was becoming farther and farther away. Looking down, her eyes widened when she realized that she had been tossed over the side of the boat and was now over open, frigid cold water. Another beam of light hit the boat, and she saw an explosion rip through one of the sides as she hit the water.

That was when something strange happened.

There was a pulse that shot through the water, ripping through the waves. Nadia was already too cold to realize that the pulse was coming from her. Her body was in the process of shutting down, and she wasn’t floating back up to the surface. She had started her descent, and the last thing that she remembered was seeing part of the boat starting to sink.

Jamie Collinsworth coughed as he came to. He realized that he was on more solid ground than he had been before, but he realized that the ground was ice and wasn’t the thick metal of his boat. Looking around, he saw a towering man dressed in medieval looking clothes staring down at him. That was when it hit him and his eyes widened.

“Nadia.” Jamie said, trying to get up.

The man pushed him back down. “Stay down. You’ve been in an accident. You were in the water and are likely experiencing shock and levels of hypothermia.” He said.

“My daughter…she was on the boat.” Jamie said. “She was tossed into the water.” He added, trying to get up again.

A flat hand pushed against his chest again, knocking back onto the ground. “Stay. I will look for your daughter.” The man said, though the look on his face told Jamie that he was pretty sure that Nadia was dead. “My name is Victor Ford, and I am the Crown Prince of Atlantis. I will find your daughter Nadia and bring her back to you.” He said. “Believe my words, land-dweller.”

He turned and jumped high into the air, disappearing beneath the oceans, as a rescue team from the research group came over the horizon on snowmobiles, rushing towards where Jamie was, staring up at the sky.

***

The ocean has its silent caves,
Deep, quiet and alone;
Though there be fury on the waves,
Beneath them there is none.

Nadia’s eyes opened, and she struggled to see what was going on. There was murky darkness everywhere and she could barely see in any direction. Her movements were slowed down, and she felt as if she was in sludge or mud. But she knew what this was like. She had been raised on the water, and had probably learned to swim before she could walk. But that didn’t mean that she could survive at this depth. More importantly than that, she had no idea why she was sinking still. This went against everything she knew about the water, which was a lot.

She would have been a marine biologist if it hadn’t felt like cheating on everything.

Turning, her eyes focused on something huge and looming coming towards her. Her eyes could barely go wider as a large, stupendously large whale came into view. Nadia could hear the deep bass of the whalesong.

The awful spirits of the deep
Hold their communion there;
And there are those for whom we weep,
The young, the bright, the fair.

Her knee jerk reaction caused a lot of problems. She opened her mouth to scream, and water rushed into her lungs. Nadia knew that this was bad, and she started to panic. There was no clear indication of which direction was up, and she wasn’t floating, she was just falling, but she wasn’t sure if she was falling up or falling down. In the distance, she saw a shimmering light, a beacon bright and green. Was this the ocean’s tunnel light, and what could it mean? Her movements slowed, her mouth closed, she wondered as she fell. What her father would do without her, and things like heaven and hell.

Calmly the wearied seamen rest
Beneath their own blue sea.
The ocean solitudes are blest,
For there is purity.

She saw a face then, no a body, as a person seemingly swam towards her. It appeared as if the person had emerged from the light, and she reached for her throat, knowing that her last bits of oxygen were quickly fading. Nadia was suffocating and dying, and she didn’t know how far beneath the surface she was.

The earth has guilt, the earth has care,
Unquiet are its graves;
But peaceful sleep is ever there,
Beneath the dark blue waves.

She went unconscious again, as the person came up to her, a woman with glowing green hair and eyes.

The water was frigid, but it didn't bother Victor. His body was adaptable to the extreme temperatures of the sea. Life in this area was sparse compared to that of the tropical oceans. In the distance he could see a lone humpback whale. They were majestic, mighty creatures. Aside from the aquatic mammal the prince couldn't see anyone else. He floated silently, listening to the water. Hoping to hear any sign of the girl. There was nothing.

He watched the whale swim closer to him. It's size became more apparent as it drew near. There was something odd about the creature. About the entire area. It was too quiet. The whale seem agitated, almost worried. It's bellowing song erupted from it's throat and echoed through the water. Victor frowned as it listened to the message. To the one word the whale had sent in his direction.

Below.

He turned his attention to the depths beneath him. Had the girl sank that fast? Was it possible she had made it so far down that she was outside of his ability to sense her? He began swimming. Faster and faster. Far below his current position he saw it. A tiny, green light. Something was down there.

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Namora stood in one of the viewing rooms, looking up towards the surface. While she couldn’t see the surface for the depths that they were in, she was able to see something else, namely the giant mass of ice that they were studying to find the source of the anomaly signature. Whatever the surface dwellers had done, they had caused the signal source to start behaving in a rather erratic manner. Looking down at the computer that she had with her, she kept searching, looking for the signal to stop it’s behavior. Dr. Cassus came up next to her and looked over her shoulder. Their eyes met and she shook her head.

“We don’t know what will happen, Dr. Cassus.” She said, with a worried and forlorn look on her face. Both of them understood the danger that everyone potentially was in. “The levels indicate a shockwave, but we don’t know what kind or of what strength.”

“Can your brother contain it?” He asked.

“I don’t know.” She admitted. “But I think I know something that might be able to.” She said. “I don’t know how to communicate with him, that’s…” She said and trailed off. Her face clouded, as if she wasn't present in the room anymore, but was somewhere else, looking at something else.

“Namora, what’s wrong?” Dr. Cassus asked.

“Victor is in trouble.” She said, and then they both looked up. She had never been able to utilize her danger sense with Victor. Always she had been able to sense when Namor was in trouble, but never Victor. So why was she able to do so now? It didn’t make sense.

But she could sense that he was in trouble, and she had an idea that there was something that had the ability to contain whatever it was that was causing the signal.

It grew larger and brighter. The light continued to move up through the depths with an incredible speed; straight for Victor. The swirling mass of energy made the water bubble around it as it continued it's torpedo ascent. The prince frowned and braced himself as he realized impact was inevitable. Within seconds he was enveloped in the green light. It hit him like a freight train and threatened to burn the very skin from his bones. He gritted his teeth against the pain, desperately trying to regain control as he was propelled upwards and out of the water. Though he fell from the sky and landed on ice he was still within the radius of the energy discharge. His body continuing to threaten to tear apart into nothing.

He struggled to move but found it to be incredibly difficult. His hand felt around for his trident but it could not be located. He frowned as he realized what a potentially dire situation he was in. Then, something strange happened. It was as if he was no longer alone. There was a presence with him, in the far corners of his mind it was like someone was reaching out to hold his hand. He focused on the individual and through clenched teeth spoke her name as he realized who it was, "Namora?"

Somehow, his sister was with him. That was all he needed. He climbed to his knees and held out on hand to the sky, "My trident! To me!" There was a shimmer under the sea as the forked weapon soared through the depths on it's way to its rightful owner. It exploded from the ocean and Victor gripped the handle. Using it as a crutch he pulled himself to his feet despite the great pressure and leveled the weapon. He yelled out as the trident's power made it glow and it began absorbing the energy around him. It took only a minute but in the end the Prince of Atlantis stood on the ice, steam erupting from his body, trident in hand, "What the hell just happened?"

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

“I…I don’t know, Victor.” Namora said, looking at her half-brother. There was worry and concern on her face. “There is something down there, that is for sure."

“We knew that already, I thought.” Victor said, frowning.

She nodded. “But we have no way of knowing what it is, exactly. I guessed the Trident would be able to contain the power, but we were lucky, very lucky.” Namora said, as the humans on the snowmobiles reached them. Whatever progress they were going to make in figuring out what was going on was going to be diverted, undoubtedly. Humans had a tendency to do that, from what Namora knew. Sure enough, that was what happened.

“Who the hell are you people?” One of them asked.

“I am Aquaman.” Victor said. “I spoke to one of your bosses. You were to turn the machines off.” He said.

“We did, but what’s with the explosion?” A different human asked.

“Whatever it is we’re both trying to find,” Namora said, “it sent out a pulse of some sort. The pulse hit a boat that was in the area and destroyed it.” She said, pointing at Jamie Collinsworth, who was stumbling around. “That man was on the boat, I think and he definitely looks like he needs some help.”

“My daughter.” Jamie said, as he collapsed to his knees. “You said you would save her!” He yelled, pointing at Aquaman.

“I tried to save her. I was…unsuccessful.” Victor said. “I have to make a choice between her life and the lives of those who would be harmed by the shockwave. I chose the many over the one."

“You mean you let her die!” Jamie yelled, as tears began to freeze on his cheeks.

“This man is in shock. You should help him.” Victor said, looking away.

“I’ll kill you!” Jamie said, scrambling to his feet and moving forward, but a few of the human researchers grabbed him and held him back. “I’ll kill every last one of you damn fish people.” He said as two of the humans pulled him back towards the snowmobiles, to try to get him settled.

Namora looked at her half-brother. “We should go. There is little that we can do here. I need to speak to Dr. Cassus.” She said.

“We need to find that man’s daughter.” Victor said, looking at Jamie who was staring out over the water, his fists clenched on parts of the snowmobile, the rage and anger barely contained by his stance. It was clear that what had happened was affecting him, and how could it not? The man had lost his daughter or at least thought her lost. Victor had made him a promise and he had failed to deliver on that promise.

“Victor, you know as well as I do how cold these waters are and how fragile the human body is. We both know that she is surely dead.” N amora said, shaking her head. “We should go."

Victor heard his sister's words yet did not respond. His eyes were fixated on the grieving father. Namora gripped his arm gently and attempted to pull him away, yet he would not budge. The Atlantean gripped his trident in his hand tightly. All the power both he and his weapon possessed and he had not been able to save this man's daughter. He turned the weapon upside down and drove it into the ice; leaving it where it now stood. The Prince of Atlantis approached the man and stood next to him. He could almost feel the rage and sorrow emanating from the grief stricken father.

Victor looked out over the ocean. The great blue seemed still in turmoil from what had transpired, "I failed you. You're right."

Jamie turned to look at the man. His eyes were already bloodshot from crying. Victor continued, "I failed your daughter."

The father lashed out with a swiftness no one could have predicted. He began swinging wildly, his fists connecting with Victor's face and torso. Several men made a move to intervene but the prince raised his hand to stop them. In all reality, this man could do little damage to him. Despite this, it didn't prevent him from trying. Anger fueled blows landed one after another and continued for a solid few minutes. No one spoke, save for Jamie who kept screaming at Victor for letting his daughter die. Eventually the man's assaults slowed and rage gave way to hopelessness. Jamie's sobs continued as Victor reached out and placed his hand on the man's shoulder, "I don't know what happened here. I don't know why your daughter died. I have no answers for you."

Jamie looked up at Victor, clearly listening as the prince continued. "My people will find her body and we will return her to you. That is a promise I will keep, sir. No matter what."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Namora watched as the father of the girl shook his head. “What good will that do me?” He asked. “Nadia is dead.” He leaned in and made a fist that he held under Victor’s jaw, hovering an inch or so underneath. “Remember this face, you Atlantean scum. I’m not going to rest until you feel the same pain I have.”

“In the same way that finding your daughter’s body will do you no good, according to you, what good will causing further pain?” Namora asked with a shake of her head, and Jamie’s eyes flashed towards her.

“You tell that fish woman to keep her mouth shut.” Jamie said.

Victor’s eyes narrowed as Namora’s eyes widened. “Do not speak to my sister in that manner.” He said, his voice starting to get a sharp edge to it. There was no way that he was going to let this direction of the conversation continue. No one insulted his sister, let alone the Princess of Atlantis.

“I’ll let you know when you get to tell me what to do. Do what your sister says. Run away.” Jamie said, turning his back and walking away.

Victor took a step forward, the grip on his trident tightening.

Namora reached out and placed a hand on his arm. “Let him go. His anger runs deep. Nothing you can say will ease him. I don’t mind what he said to me.” She said, and Victor looked at his younger sister, before finally nodding.

They departed.

*****

There was a knock on the door, and Namor looked up. “Come in.” He said and the door opened, as Callan stepped inside. “Callan, what is it?” he asked.

“Something has happened at the Antartic research station where your brother and sister are.” Callan said. “We received word that they have found the object that they were looking for, but that something happened with some of the surface dwellers who have been looking for the item as well.” He said.

“Is everyone alright?” Namor asked, rising from where he had been seated in his chambers.

“I believe so,” Callan said, “but the information is slow in coming. The commander of the base sent us the update. It did not appear as though he was present for what had happened.” Callan said.

Namor frowned. “What could have transpired?” He asked. “Was the event caused by the item that we’re looking for?”

“I believe so.”

This was not good. If there was one thing that he didn’t want, it was for this…item, this thing to be something this powerful. The ramblings of a war-crazed council were something that he could deal with, if the council had no means to truly propose war.

But if this item did have potency, then the council would have an inclination to attempt to use the item to repower the super weapon that the Atlanteans had tried to use on the surface dwellers. While Namor was willing to go to war, he had given the Captain his word that he would give the man a chance to do something. If Namor had anything in this world, it was his word. Standing by the word that he had given was the one thing that he could do to try to keep the council from making more ill advised suggestions.

Namor shook his head. With incomplete information on what had transpired, this was not a good position for the crown of Atlantis to be in.

Namor was angry. Victor could tell by the way he held himself, despite it only being an image of his brother and him not actually being there with Victor and Namora. The king nodded to his siblings, "What the hell happened out there, Victor?"

The Prince shook his head, "I am no scientist, brother. I have no answers for you. Neither my time living with the humans nor my time in Atlantis has given me any inclination as to what took place. I wish I had better news for you."

Namor's eyes flashed red with an all too familiar look, "That is unacceptable! You are a Prince of Atlantis! A representative of the Royal Crown! You were sent there to monitor the situation!"

Namor raised his hand, "Silence, sister! You have no standing here! Go back to your studies and mind your place!"

"Enough! You are out of line, brother!" Victor's face now mirrored the rage found on Nasmor's, "I don't know what game the Council is playing with you but the stress of it has clearly begun to affect you. This conversation is over until you gain some composure......brother."

Victor dismissed the image of Namor. Turning his attention to his sister he placed his hand on her shoulder, "Disregard his words. His anger gets the best of him. As you know. He didn't mean it."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Victor’s younger sister nodded. “I know.” She said, reaching up and nibbling on one of her thumbnails. “He’s under a lot of stress right now.” She turned her back to her brother and walked towards one of the windows of the room, one that afforded her a great view of the depths of the ocean. An orca whale was in the distance, moving slowly along its way, without a care in the world compared to the Atlantean Royal Family. They had a problem, one that needed to be dealt with sooner rather than later.

Namor would sort himself out, she knew that. She was not shaken by his words. Her brother had moods like this and she was used to it by now. It was something she had to be used to, after the years of dealing with it. But more importantly than that, Namora knew they had to figure out what had been causing the anomalies and what had caused that….disruption…in the natural order of things. Her eyes found Victor, who she could see was still bothered by what had happened with Namor.

“It’s alright.” She said.

“It’s not alright.” He replied. “He should know better than to speak to you in that manner. He may be the king, but you are his sister. As we respect him, he should respect us.” He said, the grip on his trident tightening. “What happened wasn’t…it wasn’t our intention.”

“What we intend and what happens are rarely the same thing, brother.” She said, reaching up and patting him on the shoulder. “I know you’re upset about what happened. As you said to me, don’t let Namor’s words bother you. You know you did all you could.” She said, and started to walk out of the room. “We need to speak to Dr. Cassus. By now, they should have more information on the anomaly.”

The prince was feeling frustrated. Current events were taking their toll on him. The energy disturbance was the least of his concerns. Something was happening in Atlantis. Political moves were being made without his knowledge. He feared for his brother's safety. He needed to wrap up this situation so that he may return to Namor's side.

Victor entered the small room serving as Cassus' office, "Doctor, what have you learned?"

**********

Somewhere Off the Coast of Hawaii

Miles Ridley stood on the deck of his vessel, the Northern Wind, sipping his coffee. It was still early enough in the day that the tropical heat didn't make drinking the caffeinated beverage a ridiculous thing to do. He loved the water, the open ocean. He was born to be out here. The crystal blue beneath the hull, the horizon in the distance, the sun and the wind. He belonged here. This was his world.

Slender arms wrapped themselves around his waist. He could feel the gentle brush of brown hair against his neck. He smiled, "Good morning."

Julia Ridley. His wife. Though everyone called her Jules. He put on hand on hers, still gripping his cup with the other. She was everything to him. Without her, he would be lost. She continued, "It's peaceful out here. I almost don't want to leave."

He nodded, "I know. But we have work to do."

She kissed him on the cheek, "Don't worry. I haven't forgotten."

She slowly turned him around to face her. Placing her hands on his face she kissed him gently, "Daniel's death will not be in vain. We'll get them Miles. We'll get them."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

“This is more than what we were expecting.” Cassus said. He looked up from his desk and smiled at Namora as she and her brother walked through his laboratory to where he was sitting. “The readings we were picking up were powerful waves that were difficult to properly isolate and identify, but we have now. It’s not something that one would consider normal under the auspices of science.”

Gesturing, he guided their attention to a computer screen. There, the second and third in line for the Throne of Atlantis saw wave patterns, but at the crest of the wave, there seemed to be schizophrenic breaks in the contiguous line. At the trough, the wave pattern was a sharp point. “It seems familiar.” Namora said. “Where have I seen this before?” She asked.

“In the brain of an Atlantean who has been corrupted by mental control.” Cassus said.

Victor’s face changed, his braids shifting as his head turned quickly and suddenly. “It’s an attempt at mind control?” He asked.

“No, not precisely.” Cassus replied with a shake of his head.

Tapping a few buttons the screen shifted, showing the wave patterns in a thumbnail to the bottom left. A zoomed out view of where they were on earth appeared, and Cassue started playing the models. Victor turned back, though the concern was still on his face, and rightfully so. Any issue with mind control was one that the Atlanteans did not want to deal with. It was a dangerous ground to play upon.

“As you can see, the energy patterns are centralized on this fixed point, the item. They’re beaming outwards, as if like a pebble had been thrown into water. The ripple effect is caused by a sudden influx of power and energy.” He said.

“So that is what is causing the anomaly, but that doesn’t answer the question.” Victor said. “There is no threat of mind control?” He asked.

“None that we’re aware of.” Cassus replied. “These patterns are nothing more than a release of stored, pent up energy of some sort from the item. I confess that this is more mystical than it is scientific, and I think that’s why mental energy converted to a more physical form. As we get closer and closer to whatever is causing the anomaly, we’re going to further upset the balance of the ecosystem in the immediate area.”

“What is your suggestion?” Namora asked. “The King will want to know what we should do.”

“Do?” Cassus asked and almost laughed. “We should do nothing. We should strip this place down to a bare bones staff to monitor the anomaly in case it starts disrupting local fauna, but besides that, we should leave it alone.”

Namora’s face changed, becoming far more inquisitive. This was very unlike the Doctor Cassus that she knew, a man who was always very interested in studying things and learning about what was around him. In many ways the stereotypical academic, this was a different side of him that she had never seen before.

“Why aren’t you more interested in trying to study this? You always say we must pursue knowledge.”

“There is a difference between pursuing knowledge and fleeting with shattering danger.” He said.

Victor lifted a hand to stop Namora from responding. She closer her mouth and looked at her brother who realized that Cassus had been saying something curious earlier. “You’ve been calling it an item. We’ve been calling it a thing or referring to the anomaly, but you’ve started calling it an item.”

Cassus nodded, looking down at the table. “We were able to get some scans of what is causing the anomaly.” He said, and pressed a few more buttons.

Victor knew exactly what he was looking at. Images of the Serpent Crown graced the history recordings of Atlantis. This item was responsible for devastation multiple times over. How it had come to rest so deep in the ice was unknown to him, but he was inclined to agree with Cassus at this point.

"I agree with you, Doctor," The Prince turned to his sister, "That is the Serpent Crown. We cannot allow it to fall into the wrong hands. This must be buried if we cannot destroy it."

Cassus nodded, "A noble sentiment but if it could be destroyed don't you think someone would have done that by now?"

Victor considered this, "Perhaps. If that's the case it must stay where it is. We must cover it up and make sure no one stumbles on it again. And most importantly....." his eyes met those of his sister and the doctor, "we must not tell anyone of this discovery. Especially not the King."

Namora's face took on a look of astonishment, "Victor! We can't keep this from Namor. He's the one that sent us out here. He's the King! He has a right to know!"

He shook his head, "No. He doesn't. Namor is our King and has a right to be protected by us. Something is happening in Atlantis, Namora. Enemies are stirring and plotting. Could you imagine what they could accomplish if they had the Serpent Crown? Not to mention that our brother has been less.....stable than normal of late. I don't want him to lay claim to a weapon that he is willing to use against other Atlanteans......or the surface."

The others stared at him as he continued, "You know that is a very real possibility, Namora."

"But....but Victor?"

He put his hands on her shoulders and stared directly into her eyes, "No, sister. I need you to promise me. Promise me this secret does not leave this room."

She put her head down, "I promise."

"I'd like to nominate Cazzik for the Sexiest Man on Earth 2010." --Balsa

Namor sat on his throne, contemplating what his brother and sister were telling him. Victor and Namorita were standing before him and the rest of the council, delivering their full report to the King of what had happened at the Antarctic research station. The anomaly was being classified as harmless, some probe of sorts that the land dwellers had dropped some time ago, and that had gotten trapped in an iceberg. Unsettling the probe in order to stop the sound waves was rather dangerous, considering the overall damage that it would cause to the iceberg and marine life in the area.

He was sure that there was something more to what had happened that his half-brother and sister weren’t telling him. There had to be. What could have caused such damage to the iceberg that a boat had been capsized? Already Namor had granted a gift of gold from the Atlantean vaults to the man who had lost his boat and his daughter. Namor could not replace the daughter, but he could replace the boat, so he would do what he could to rectify his brother’s failures. He knew it wasn’t his brother’s fault.

But Victor had to learn not to make promises that he could not follow through on. That was one of the problems of leadership, of kingship. Namor was being reminded of that himself, every day recently since he made the promise to deal with the surface dwellers. The Council was constantly asking him when he was going to make good on that promise. So far, he had nothing to give them other than a failed invasion and the presumed good faith of a promise by Captain America. If the Captain did not do anything soon, it would be time to follow through the with the Council’s desires for war.

Namor waited a few moments after Victor finished speaking before he spoke himself. “If Doctor Cassus’ expert opinion is that there is no need to move the probe then we will not touch it.” He said. “But I do want to keep a presence there to ensure that there’s no radiation that affects wildlife. We need to expand our presence in those waters as it stands.” He said.

Some of the other council members nodded their heads at this. He knew that they were in support of almost any plans of expanding Atlantean control. There were already only a few places that did not fall under the Atlantean crown. The false pretenders who ran the small territory of Xebel were to Namor, pieces of filth that would be dealt with in time. He was more concerned with that than he was with an invasion of the land dwellers. Better to have everything in order under your own roof before you attempted to deal with others.

“We have other issues to attend to now.” Namor said, indicating that Victor should resume his normal position. He looked away for a moment as he considered what Callan had advised him to do. “For too long now, our military has been disjointed. We have overlapping levels of leadership. This is a holdover from our days fighting the Chrell, when one general would have to take over command of another’s force should that general fall in battle.”

“What would you propose?” Ariak asked.

“A new command structure. One built around a more structured hierarchy.” Namor said. “One that will streamline the command. It will answer to one leader who will answer to me.” He said.

Victor turned and looked at his brother. “Who are you suggesting would be that leader?” He asked. He highly expected his brother to chose him for the position. After all, Victor was a born leader and second in line for the throne. It made sense and it was something that would be smart for Namor to go with.

He saw the changes in the looks on the faces of a few of the council members. Almost everyone had assumed he would have picked Victor. Though he could not see Victor’s face, he was fairly sure that his brother had assumed that as well. “There will be a formal swearing in ceremony tomorrow, at which point there will also be a dinner celebration of Brackus’ elevation.” He said. “This meeting is over.”

He looked over his shoulder at the jacket that he was supposed to wear for the evening’s festivities. It was not something that he looked forward to. Namor didn’t like pomp and circumstance but he appreciated the benefit of it. It was going to keep the old fools on the council distracted. They’d fawn over each other and over Atlantean nobility for the evening and for a few more days. It pinned a lot of attention on Callas’ son Brackus, keeping it away from Namor and Victor. This was important to him. He turned back, looking out over the city of Atlantis from the balcony of the palace. His hands were folded at the small of his back. There was much calculating that needed to be done. He still remembered the words he had shared with Callas. There were enemies of the crown all around them. Enough time had passed that these fools had forgotten what his family had done for their people. Strength and dedication to the cause had been what had allowed Namor the Second to eradicate the Chrell from the waters of this world, as well as unite all the Atlanteans and other underwater races under one banner.

His father had been a warrior king, who had raised his son in that manner. The problem was that there was no longer any war to be fought. Namor the Second’s mentality had been that of preparation, fearing the worst. But his son had been thrust into a world gift the peace so longed for by his father, but with the same mentality. Namor looked for the fight, he looked for the conflict. He sought it out, he knew that. But resisting it, that was the difficulty. He had to find a way, a diplomatic way to resolve these problems with the council. Because he didn’t know who it was who was plotting against him and so he couldn’t rightly eliminate all of them. That simply wouldn’t do.

There was a knock on the door to his bed chambers. Namor turned and spoke over his shoulder.

“Enter.”

The door opened and Brackus walked into the room, in his new uniform. A dark purple and black uniform, there were a few gold accents. His cape floated in the water, and he held the helm of his position in his hands. A ruggedly handsome man, Brackus was a clear military man, someone who had served his entire life.

“Brackus.”

“My King.” Brackus said. “I wanted to take this time, personally, to thank you for the faith that you have placed in me. I know your decision was a difficult one, and one you could not have undertaken lightly.” He said. “The fact that you chose me, with all of those factors, makes it that much more humbling.”

Namor nodded. “I appreciate your candor, Brackus. You will have difficult times ahead of you. Reining in this military and keeping them under control is a difficult task. But I know I have selected well by making you the commander of the military.” He said. “The title of Ocean Master is a heavy one.” He said.

Brackus smiled. “I will make you proud, my King. I have received word that they are ready for us.” He said and turned to step out of the room, but found himself looking at the King’s half-brother.

Victor stood there, motionless, his eyes on Brackus and Namor. Namor had not yet spoken to his brother since he had made the announcement, but he knew that the choice stuck in Victor’s craw. Anyone with half a brain would have thought that it would have been Victor and not Brackus to be the King’s choice as Ocean Master.

It was something his brother was just going to have to live with.

Namor did not change his mind lightly, and he would not here. Nor would he explain himself to his brother. He was the King for a reason.

The ballroom was elegantly decorated, in true Atlantean fashion. Namor had donned his jacket. A black and blue design, the light blue was a regal color, with the black threading and weaving design giving it a highlight that another man might have appreciated. For Namor, it was simply an article of clothing he had to wear. He was bare chested, as was his tendency, and he wore tight black shark leather pants. The party had already started, and he watched as the Atlantean elite mingled. A pack of piranhas could have been present and these men and women would have eaten them alive. Namor walked through the room, making eye contact with those that he needed to, makinghis way towards a particular table. The head table, where he would sit.

Also where his sister was sitting.

Namor stopped in front of her, but she was too busy staring into her glass to notice. Clearing his throat, this was enough to get Namorita’s attention. She looked up at him and her gaze was one that hardened almost immediately.

“What is the matter, little sister?” He asked.

“You know what the matter is, Namor.” She said, as he came around the table and sat down next to her. “Why would you pick Brackus over Victor?” She asked. “You know the position of Ocean Master is not one taken lightly. The last time that title was used was during the Chrell War. When you use it, you suggest that we are at war.” Namorita said.

Namor sighed. There were few people able to get away with questioning the King of Atlantis. His little sister was one of those few. “With everything I do,” He said, “there always seems to be someone upset with the decision.”

“You’re the king, it’s natural.” She replied.

“I know the position is an important one. I chose Brackus, because I want the Council on their toes. They expect Victor. To tell them it will be someone else, that changes the dynamic of things. Victor’s position is absolute, even if he doesn’t always feel that way.” He said.

“But are we at war?” She asked.

“No, we are not. But the king who does not stay prepared, he is the one who will find himself failing his people.” Namor said. “That was the hallmark of Father’s rule as King.” He added, placing his hands on the table and flexing his fingers. “We cannot think that we are immune to threats merely because we do not see the threat on the horizon.” He said.

As he spoke, Namor looked up and saw a red haired woman in a beautiful flowing dress walking through the ballroom. He’d never seen her before, and there was an air about her, something Namor could not put his finger on. Rising from the table he began to walk towards her.

He walked through the crowd, sifting through them. A difficult thing for a King to do, but Namor did it. His eyes never left the woman as he walked however. She was a beautiful woman, radiant, to say the least. But there was something else about her, something mysterious. She wore a multicolored dress, of blue, white, beige, and black hues, that looked as though it had been cobbled together of seashells. She looked out of place but at the same time as if she belonged. Namor the Third’s walk ended up where he was standing behind her.

She was roughly his height, maybe an inch or two shorter. He cleared his throat and she turned, looking over her shoulder at him. Her eyes widened slightly.

“King Namor.” She said. “It is wonderful to be here this evening.” She said.

“My name is Kayara.” She said. “You might not recognize my face, because I’m not from these parts.” Kayara said.

Namor took a step back, regarding her in a new light. “That name, it is vaguely familiar.” He said. He paused, thinking about it. The name was rather familiar but he couldn’t place it properly. “I remember reading about a Kayara who fought in Atlantean ranks during the Chrell War.” He said.

Kayara nodded. “My grandmother. I was named after her.” She said. “You know your history well.”

“I am the King.” Namor said with a smug look on his face. “It may be important that I know the history of my people.” He paused.

It was not lost on him that this woman was not using the honorific that accompanied normal conversation with the King of Atlantis. While it was one thing for Victor or Namorita or even Callan to not use it, it was something else entirely when anyone else were to. Impertinence was not something he appreciated nor tolerated. There was a presence to this woman though. There was a presence that he could not put his finger on.

“The woman named Kayara from our history, she was from Xebel.” Namor said. He gestured, pointing at the woman. “You then, are from Xebel?” He asked and she nodded. With anger, Namor bristled. “What is someone from Xebel doing here?” He asked. “Your people are traitors. We let you into our world and you assume control of part of the Pacific, and set yourselves up as Kings.”

“I know.” She said.

“You dishonor the sacrifices your ancestors made during the War.” Namor said, biting each word.

“I still haven’t disagreed with you.” Kayara replied, with a smile. “I’m here because I need your help.”

Namor scoffed. “My help? What help should I give to you, a traitor to the Atlantean Crown?” He asked. “The only help I should offer you is that of the stockade. I’ve a mind to have my guards arrest you this very moment.”

She shook her head as he looked up, seemingly for his guards. “I would advise against that. You don’t know why I’m here, you don’t know what aid I would seek.” Kayara said. When he looked back down at her, she smiled. She knew she had intrigued his curiosity. From what she knew of the Atlantean monarch that was something one had to do in order to get his attention.

She nodded slowly. “Your words ring true, King of the Waters. The people of Xebel did cross the dimensional border and were stalwart allies of Atlantis during the Chrell War. But after the War, there was a movement that took my people by force and had them set up their own territory in the Pacific.”

“What do you seek?” He asked.

“My grandmother was one of the noblewomen of Xebel before the war. Afterwards, she championed becoming Atlanteans. She was….killed for that.” Kayara said. “My father took up her cause, moving from the shadows and doing what he could while remaining publicly in favor of a kingdom without heritage, without honor. Your people freed us from our prison, and we stole your lands.”

“What do you seek?” Namor asked again, his eyes narrowing. “You’re telling me things that for the most part I already knew.”

Kayara smiled. “A few weeks ago, my father was kidnapped and taken into custody. I can not find him. There is talk of actual revolt against the current regime, but there is no one for the people to rally behind. They need leadership.” She said. She looked around the room. “Your people have that leadership. They have you, their king.”

Namor looked around the room as well. He could see all the courtesans and the nobles, the members of the council, his brother, his sister, and his new Ocean Master. He did not see what Kayara saw. He saw a fractured and disjointed house, something he was working hard to rectify. But he did not see the level of leadership this woman before him saw. Turning back to her, he shook his head.

“There are problems in these halls, I’m afraid.”

“Your enemies don’t possess the power to kill innocents in the street, or do they?”

“Not precisely. What are you proposing?” He asked.

“If you aid me in finding my father and in overthrowing the government, we will rejoin Atlantis and you will truly be the King of the Waters again.” Kayara said.

Namor scoffed. “You have no grounds on which to bargain with me.” He said. “You need me but what you’re offering in exchange is something I can take anyway. You do need to work on your diplomacy.” Namor added. When she simply stared at him, his gaze remained unwavering. “What stops me from coming in to Xebel and simply reasserting Atlantean control?” He asked.

“Nothing.” Kayara admitted. “You’d undoubtedly win, Xebel is not a large territory for a military such as yours.” She said. “But it’s easier when you have help on the inside isn’t it?” She asked. “I don’t pretend to be something I’m not, your Highness, I’m not a diplomat. I’ve been a survivor who hasn’t had the time to think about such things.” She looked around the room. “As much as you may have problems in your halls as you stated, they are nothing compared to the death happening in mine. I only wish to find a way to solve the problem.”

Namor followed her gaze around the room. He knew what people saw when they saw such an event such as this, especially if they knew nothing of what transpired within the hearts and minds of the people within it. It looked like stability, it looked like solid ground. He nodded. “I can appreciate honesty and truthfulness.” He said. “I don’t sense any deception from you.” He turned and scanned the room until he found Victor.

His half-brother had taken his time in joining the event. Understandable considering Victor had undoubtedly expected to be named for the position that Brackus had been given. As it happened, Victor looked over at his brother and Namor gave him an indication that he wished to speak with him. Victor excused himself from the conversation he had been in, and walked over. Namor shifted slightly, so that Kayara was in view. His brother’s eyes lit up as he took in the woman before him and he joined the two of them, having never taken his eyes off of since he had first seen her.

“Victor, this is Kayara.” Namor said.

She bowed slightly. “Your Highness.” She said. “It is a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is mine.” Victor said, and Namor almost rolled his eyes. His brother’s voice, already deep and usually gravely, seemed to have been dropped into a mine inside of a mountain. “Kayara…that name is from Xebel.” He said. His eyes finally shifted, tearing away from Kayara’s shapely visage and to his brother’s stern face. “What is Xebel doing sending someone to this event?” He asked.

Namor smiled, wistfully. “If only that were the case. Kayara is not here on behalf of her government. She represents herself.” He looked back at Kayara. “I will leave the discussion of this matter to you and my brother.” He said. “If he decides we will help you, then we will.” Namor added. “My brother speaks for the Crown.”

He looked over at his brother and the two shared a single solitary nod before Namor walked away.